Best and Worst of Coyotes Era

Now that it is official and the Phoenix Coyotes are done feeding players and coaches to the San Antonio Rampage, here’s a few comments on the improved but at times rocky relationship between the two organizations.

This reporter will definately miss connecting with General Manager Brad Treliving, who was always as candid as he could be in answering questions and being very “user friendly” when it came to working with John Whistler and myself. Brad and I also had a nice connection because of our CHL ties and that helped our relationship. It was kinda fun watching him go into orbit when the Rampage did something stupid on the ice as well.

I’m sure Chuck Weber, should the Panthers move in as expected and keep him as their coach, will be equally as helpful in reporting on the team as Ray Edwards, but Ray was a special person. Believe me, a reporter and coach have to have a strong professional relationship for those nights when coach wants to rip someone’s head off and slap it around the room, but has to answer your dumb questions explaining the hard luck loss or the complete stomping the team took that night. Edwards was always in control, smiling at times when he wanted to be gnashing and grinding his teeth, answering our probing taunts in a professional manner. I got the feeling that when we left the room during a losing streak, Edwards would throw ghost punches at the place where we were once standing, or at least silently wish to pull our jackets over our heads and have at it, but while we were in the room, he treated us with candor and respect. Of course, when things were going well in November and December last season, there were smiles all around.

It had to irk Edwards when the Rampage posted their third best record in franchise history, and still miss the playoffs by four points and stay out of the division basement by only two points. If the Rampage have one thing to point to their lack of success this past season, it is the 245 goals they allowed — 17 more than they scored.

So here’s Tony Uminski’s Top 10 Phoenix Rampage players, based on performance, not necessarily goals, assists and points…

Number 10 — Defenseman Dylan Reese — in 134 Rampage games, Reese scored only two goals, but he did notch 33 assists from the blueline and provided leadership on the ice. Rarely out of position after a shaky first AHL shift where he got beat badly on a breakaway, the former Harvard standout has played 46 NHL games with the New York Islanders. Reese has also scored two AHL playoff goals.

Number 9 — Goaltender Josh Tordjman — Tordjman will be the first to say he holds all Rampage goaltending records because he was here longer than any other netminder, which is part of the reason he is ranked 9th and the only netminder on the list…you never knew what you would get from Tordjman, but if he was on his game, the opponent was in for a long night. On those nights when Josh struggled, well, it was ugly. After his release by Phoenix, he caught on as a backup to Matt Hackett in Houston. He did get a look in the NHL, but his line of 0-2 and 4.08 goals against in the show, just may stick as his lifetime NHL mark.

Number 8 — Defenseman Keith Yandle — The Boston native, a fourth round pick in 2005, has developed into a high-priced, puck-chugging NHL defenseman, and he had his moments here in San Antonio. But Yandle suffered from “Montoya Syndrome” — where he would play much better in the NHL than in the AHL for some reason — mainly motivation and attitude. Yandle would look absolutely lost on the ice during his last games here, and has shown those moments in the NHL as well. Bad habits are tough to break. However, when Yandle decided to play his game, he could take over and dominate, especially on the power play.

Number 7 — Left Wing Mikkel Boedker — The eighth overall pick in the 2008 draft showed flashes of brilliance, moreso his second season here as he played his way into the Coyotes lineup. The Danish Dandy has speed to burn and he knows how to hit the net with the puck, but dealt with motivation issues here, mainly because the Coyotes kept him in the desert his first pro season and then assigned him here after a taste of the good life and salary. Tough situation for a 19-year old to handle — a demotion and cut in pay. But to his credit, Boedker figured it out. This last season, he was the best player on the ice most nights and he was deadly on the shootout, going 4-4 before his callup to the big club. He’s ranked so low because in 100 Rampage games, he scored only 23 goals — my opinion, that number should have been doubled for such a high pick.

Number 6 — Defenseman Sean Sullivan — Other than Travis Roche’s two seasons, Sullivan was the best Rampage defenseman of the Coyote’s run. Sullivan was as big a riverboat gambler on the blueline as you’ll find, but had the speed to get back most of the time. He managed 21-68-89 in parts of four seasons. An AHL All-Star, confident, mentally and physically tough, Sullivan has yet to make an impact in the NHL, but he’s a valued member of the San Jose organization and signed through next season.

Number 5 — Center Chad Kolarik — The former University of Michigan goal scorer did much the same with the Rampage. Kolarik made a splash on the Rampage scene, scoring a playoff hat trick against Toronto in the only San Antonio playoff visit after joining the team out of colllege in 2008. The 199th player chosen in the seventh round of the 2004 draft netted 37 goals in 135 games, and was pretty handy in the faceoff circle. Kolarik’s post-season magic continued this season, when he scored three goals and two assists for the Connecticut Whale, giving him seven goals and 11 points in 10 AHL post-season contests. Kolarik has also played in six NHL games with Columbus and the New York Rangers since his trade from the Phoenix organization for Alexandre Picard.

Number 4 — Center Joel Perrault — When Perrault joined the Rampage in 2005-06, his one goal and six assists in 12 games didn’t really bode well for his career in San Antonio. What followed was a consistant career, filled with game-winning goals in the game’s last minute or overtime, as well as leading the franchise in scoring until Brett MacLean came along to wipe his name off the record book. Perrault was guilty of taking a shift or two off, and his struggle with defense has probably kept him out of the NHL on a consistant basis. But overall, his ability to score clutch goals and carry his big frame around the ice puts him up on the list.

Number 3 — Left Wing Brett MacLean — The Coyotes 2o07 second round pick, 32nd overall, lived up to his hype here as the franchise’s all time leading scorer 74-81-155. MacLean also has played in the most Rampage games, 201, which accounts for some of those scoring figures. MacLean isn’t the most polished skater, although he is tough on his blades, but his game is around the net. Perhaps if he can bulk up, he will be a strong NHL third liner, but in the AHL, MacLean was the guy everyone on the other side had to account for in the defensive zone. He would score many in-close goals for the Rampage — not pretty goals, and his presence was missed during the playoff run this past year. MacLean has two goals in 13 NHL games when he finally got his chance in March.

Number 2 — Center David Spina — Spina spun around the ice like a waterbug on a liquid Red Bull diet in his three seasons here. Although inhibited by his 5-10 size (generously posted on his official record), Spina was always involved on the ice. The Arizona native wanted so badly to break in the hometown Coyote’s lineup while here, and looked primed to get a crack when he ripped a chest muscle in a pre-season game in Cedar Park that cost him that chance and most of the season. Spina responded with a flourish, scoring 6-11-17 in 23 games and usually when Spina ended up on the score sheet, the Rampage won the game. He enjoyed career seasons here, and until MacLean passed him by, his 78 assists were a franchise high. Plus, his engaging personality made him a favorite with fans and media alike.

Number 1 — Defenseman Bryan Helmer — Helmer won’t win many scoring awards as a defenseman. He won’t win many MVP awards for his play on the ice. But all he did was win where ever he put his stick on the ice. The best captain in Rampage history, Helmer helped lead a veteran blueline that included Travis Roche and Brendan Bell into the AHL playoffs. But more importantly for this franchise, Helmer has a heart of gold and is a card carrying member of the Game of Life Hall of Fame. Many nights after the room cleared, win or lose, Helmer would be found giving tours of the Rampage locker room to kids and fans alike. His enthusiasm and love of the game is contagious, and he won back-to-back Calder Cups in Hershey when the Coyotes didn’t resign him after his second season here. When the Washington Capitals signed him instead, he not only led the Bears to the AHL crown, he also got his first call-up to the NHL in six years and told me his biggest thrill in playing in the NHL again was that his son could see him play there against the Montreal Canadians. It was no coincidence the Oklahoma City Barons became a playoff team when Helmer joined them in January.

Honorable Mention — Kevin Porter, the Hobey Baker Award winner who scored 15-25-40 in 52 Rampage games and Kyle Turris, who scored 63 of his 71 points in his one full season with San Antonio. It took the number 3 pick overall in the 2007 draft awhile to get going, but once he did, he showed promise and probably deserves to be higher on the list, but played fewer games here than his co-first-round draft mate, Boedker. And let’s face it, being the third pick in the NHL draft almost demanded dominance on the ice, and Turris didn’t quite make that happen here. And let’s not forget Alexandre Picard, who scored 33 goals in 75 games, another number one pick that has underachieved, but played tough in front of the opponent’s net every night.

Toughest — Gotta go with Francis Lessard — scary tough…second would be Adam Keefe followed by Ryan Hollweg. Honorable mention here was Simon Ferguson, who chose his spots. Logan Stephenson was also someone players would avoid. PeteVandermeer was just crazy and picked up horrible penalties along the way.

Biggest Impact in the NHL — Kevin Porter has 21 NHL goals in 128 NHL games, mostly with Colorado…Yandle has 32-112-144 in 283 NHL contests and will most likely hit the 4-5 million dollar mark this season…Daniel Winnik has 29-49-78 in 282 NHL games…Al Montoya, with his 30-38-3 record and .898 save percentage here, is a puzzling 12-6-5 with a .923 save percentage and 2.15 GAA with the Coyotes and Islanders…David Schlemko, Bill Thomas, Mike Zigomanis and Jeff Taffe have had their NHL moments since skating here in San Antonio. If you wonder why the Rampage made the playoffs only once in six years — here is an indicator — very few impact players have made headlines in the NHL.

Disappointments — Montoya, who just seemed distracted here, which resulted in fans looking through their fingers whenever the opponent had an odd-man break…Turris and Boedker, who should have dominated the AHL, but got better as they matured…Alex Bourret, a number-one pick of the Atlanta Thrashers who looked absolutely lost on the ice, and Enver Lisin, who had so much talent and speed, but couldn’t handle the North American transition and listened too much to his agent than his coaches.

As far as some lean times — who can forget (although we’ve tried to forget about it), that wonderful 2005-06 season, the first the Coyotes played here…23-50-0-3, scoring 153 goals in 80 games–that’s 1.91 per game. Eleven of those were scored in the first three games. Now I don’t know about you, but the funnest part of going to a hockey game is when the home team scores and everyone goes nuts. The Rampage were shutout 13 times that season, and won two 1-0 games themselves. There was a drought of San Antonio proportions in March 2006, when the Rampage scored four goals in six games — including being shutout three straight times. Earlier, at the end of October, the team scored two goals in four games, including back-to-back shutouts. Horrible hockey.

The next season didn’t improve matters, as the Rampage went a combined 57-92…missing the playoffs by 37 points in year one, improving to 15 points out the next season, finishing ahead of the Houston Aeros. The Aeros have recovered from that dismal season to make the playoffs in three of the next four years — reaching the Calder Cup Finals once and the Western Conference finals another season. Meanwhile, the Rampage struggled and have played only 10 playoff games in nine YEARS.

Hopefully, a new organization can change that, but since the rumored Florida Panthers are that organization, an organization who’s AHL team has missed the playoffs four of the past six years, and the parent team hasn’t advanced to the Stanley Cup playoffs since the turn of the century, Rampage fans can almost safely make plans to do something other than watch their team playing hockey in mid-April.